Nicole Richie’s Cringeworthy Fashion Moment

Nicole Richie has gone from a tabloid media mainstay to a busy working mother of two. Originally breaking out from the shadow of her dad Lionel Richie and rising to fame as Paris Hilton’s side kick in the hilarious The Simple Life, the mom to daughter Harlow, age 4, and son Sparrow, age 2, returns to reality television helping up and coming designers perfect their lines as a mentor on Fashion Star. Breezy Mama’sMaya got the scoop on who is HER fashion mentor and how she juggles motherhood and work. Plus! Her fashion faux pas era all we kids of the eighties are guilty of.

Was there a fashion period in your life you cringe over?

I was a huge Punky Brewster fan when I was 8 or 9 and I would go to school wearing a black shoe and a white shoe and then a green sock and a yellow sock. Then the weekends would come and my mom would want me to go shopping with her and that’s how I would dress and she was mortified and I just thought I am so cool. And now I look back at pictures and in all my childhood pictures I’m wearing the different color socks and the different color shoes…

That was the style…

It’s definitely a little cringeworthy.

Will you be giving criticism of the designs of those competing on Fashion Star?

As their mentor it wasn’t about me judging them or telling them their designs are good or bad. [All of us mentors, including Jessica Simpson] were all – at the time — designing and getting ready for our spring lines as well. As their mentor, it was important for me that they knew we were all going through this together. It’s always a crap shoot every single [fashion] season and I didn’t want them feeling I was in a higher place than them. We’re all in this business and it’s a grueling business – it’s a lot of work. And we are going to hold hands and walk through this process together.

How do you juggle the show and being a mom?

The time commitment [of the show] was 24 hours [laughs]. There’s no trick to it, it’s just hard work.

Maya Ramirez Drake lives in Carlsbad with her husband Todd and their three reading sons, Noah (14), Lucas (12) and Joshua (9). She is a reading teacher/EL teacher at Magnolia Elementary . Maya graduated from the University of California, Irvine with a Major in English and a Minor in Spanish. She recieved her Teaching Credential from the California State University, San Marcos. Her teaching experiences include ESL/Citizenship instructor, EL and Reading tutor as well as first and second grade teacher. Maya grew up in a family of educators and values all that she has learned from her family and from her own teachers throughout her educational career. Her teaching philosophy is to value each child and to instill a love of learning in all her students. Maya and her family enjoy surfing, paddle boarding, soccer and camping in Northern California.